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| Sunday, 4 May 2003 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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Cathay allays SARS fears It is now safe to fly even to Hong Kong despite the SARS outbreak, a Cathay Pacific Airlines spokesman said in Colombo. Cathay's Country Manager for Sri Lanka and the Maldives, Toby Smith admitted that the SARS outbreak seemed to have peaked in China. Smith quoted Prof Roy Anderson, a specialist in infectious diseases of the Imperial College in London, who had said, "This is not a highly transmissible infection." Smith said that according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), most SARS infections have occurred in high risk groups such as healthcare workers and within families and intimates of SARS patients. Transmission through casual contact in an aircraft is highly unlikely, Smith said. He pointed out that last week, WHO cleared Vietnam as a SARS-free country, as no cases of the disease had surfaced after April 8. He argued that other nations too had implemented safety precautions. SARS was not a reason to avoid flying. Smith pointed out that WHO's travel advisory on Hong Kong does not apply to passengers simply transiting through Hong Kong International Airport. WHO had further stated that SARS should not deter people from travelling. Smith quoted WHO and IATA figures of 200 million travellers who had boarded aircraft since the outbreak of SARS. He argued that there had been only five cases of possible transmission in the cabin. This was before screening procedures were put in place. Cathay's Airport Services Manager in Colombo, Premkumar Fernando said WHO had commented that screening procedures for passengers at airports in affected countries were effective. Cathay's local agent James Finlay and Company Colombo's Deputy Chairman, Kumar Jayasuriya said WHO had confirmed that the SARS virus could not be transmitted by air. When in flight, fresh air flows continuously into the cabin. The entire cabin air volume is exchanged every three to five minutes. Cathay's aircraft are fitted with particle air filters with a 99.9 per cent effective rate, which effectively filter out bacteria, making the dry air inhospitable to germs. That air is six times fresher than the air in an average office building, Jayasuriya said. All passengers and crew departing, arriving or transiting in Hong Kong are required to have their temperature checked. If the body temperature of a person exceeds 38 degrees Celsius, secondary checks are carried out. Smith also claimed that Cathay planes are disinfected after each flight in accordance with WHO guidelines. Todate, no Cathay crew member had contracted the illness in flight, he said. (EL) |
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